Kudos to you NYT for keepin’ it local for America’s hometown!
Back in the day... before the East Village was colonized, I lived on 3rd Street, about one block East from the Hell's Angel's outpost, and it was the safest block in the world.
It was also the cleanest, because no one in their right mind wanted to drop a piece of litter or come too close to any of the bikes parked out front.
They kept the building in good shape too.
But I'm still in shock that an apartment there can go for about $3,500 a month.
I wonder what Big Vinny would think about that.
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Back in the day, when the Tredwells, a wealthy New York family, resided in what is now the Merchant's House Museum (on Fourth Street, off Lafayette) and had living in their attic several Irish maids . . . .
Cities change: from the gentry, to the middle class and the poor, back to the gentry.
If only people themselves could be gentrified, both poor and rich. Better, gentler manners all around would go a long way.
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How about instead of installations, there is more NYC news in the actual newspaper? Two or three pages a day do not make "local coverage". The once-a-week Metropolitan section is mostly human interest, not news. I've been reading the Times long enough to remember when local news got it's own daily multipage section full of information about what was newsworthy in NYC and the wider metropolitan area.
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Are these installations created by artists who are inspired by your reporting; informational displays about the subjects of some investigative reporting; or are they sort of meta-reporting -- advertisements for how great the Times' local reporting is?
I had to laugh when I saw that we are asked to comment by sending a tweet. You all write "groundbreaking journalism" and conduct "major investigations" and we are asked to respond in fewer than 280 characters using a platform that's notoriously used to convey the opposite of truth.
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Somewhere between first and second. They’re dioramas—think Macy’s Christmas windows—of city scenes inspired by specific investigations.
The Manhattan one shows a lone taxi driving between skyscrapers, with a wild exaggerated perspective: inspired by the recent medallion loan investigations.
I’m yet on my way to the rest!
Each has some vinyl text written more in the form of an ad encouraging you to subscribe, though not explicitly.
They lead you to nyt.com/nyc, which is a call to subscribe.
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Whoops, I meant between first and third.
I don't understand the point of the installations and why they're necessary to promote NY Times coverage of local news. Seems like an"artisan" approach with no particular point. The Times' investigations of local stories has always been commendable. Coverage of local news has always been sketchy.
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"The park experimented with alcohol sales near the lawn last year."
I get the sense that unless some disaster happens, this will be a very successful experiment. It's become almost more common in Broadway theaters that they allow alcohol at the seat - and at "Tootsie" this spring, they had totally solved the only apparent potential downside, by using sippy-type cups that you'd almost have to use a crowbar to open and spill a drink on the floor or others. (I remember we could open our cups at the last Broadway Theatre 2016 "Fiddler" because my cousin got me a "Fiddler" souvenir cup and poured some bottled water in it since it was, after all, only 2 pm. She still had the wine to Drink L'Chaim and said I'm sure it's after 6 in Anatevka.)
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The Metropolitan Diary about Charlie Barnett brought back many memories. The first time I saw him was on a bus in Boston. He simply got up and did his act, then said “This is my stop” and jumped off. A year later I moved to the East Village and saw him in Washington Square. One day I asked him about the act on the bus, and explained he was on his way to a gig at a comedy club, and wanted to rehearse. We became friendly for a time, until I moved away.
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The storefront installations look really interesting. Can you walk inside, or are they only visible from outside? Is the surrounding neighborhood referenced directly in the exhibits? I can't wait to explore these!
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